Riverside County animal services spokesman says the boy, likely 2 or 3 years old, was playing with an older sibling in the family's field when the bull appeared. He was treated for bruises.

A young child playing in a Mead Valley field was charged and butted by a bull Monday afternoon, sending him to the hospital, officials said.

According to the boy's aunt, Maria Avilez, he suffered bruises and scratches to his face but escaped serious harm.

"He's fine, it was nothing horrible but it gave everyone a scare," she said.

According to John Welsh, public information chief for Riverside County animal services, "Two kids were playing in the field, and apparently there was no bull in the field when they got there but then the bull showed up."

Welsh said the bull had apparently come into a field next to the property owned by the children's parents. A chain-link fence separated the curious kids from the bull. When the bull charged, 4-year-old Luz Muñoz ran away, but the animal butted 2-year-old Daniel Muñoz through the fence.

Animal control officers rushed to the field, which is fenced on three sides, and used their vehicles to keep the bull penned in. They later loaded up the animal and took it away.

Welsh said a brand inspector will try to determine who owns the bull.

"You sometimes hear about people being gored by a bull, but that's usually when they are working with them," he said. "This is something I have never experienced before."

Mead Valley is a rural, unincorporated area of Riverside County near Perris.